MLC Chat vs DoomCatcher
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MLC Chat
Engage in conversations with open language models directly on your iPad or iPhone. Once a model is downloaded, all interactions occur locally, ensuring privacy and offline functionality without internet access. This app is designed for non-commercial use, allowing you to run various open-source language models on your device.
- Local AI model chat
- Offline functionality
- No internet required
- Privacy-focused
- Open-source project integration
- Downloadable language models
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MLC Chat lets users chat with open language models locally on ipads and iphones. After a model is downloaded to the app, everything runs locally without server support, and it works without internet connections do not record any information. Because the models run locally, it only works for the devices with sufficient VRAM depending on the models being used. MLC Chat is part of open source project MLC LLM, with allows any language model to be deployed natively on a diverse set of hardware backends and native applications. MLC Chat is a runtime that runs different open model architectures on your phone. The app is intended for non-commercial purposes. It allows you to run open-language models downloaded from the internet. Each model can be subject to its respective licenses.
DoomCatcher
This app automatically locks distracting applications when you enter a designated physical zone, such as your bedroom or desk. It works with a companion hardware device to create personalized calm spaces without manual intervention. Reclaim your focus and be more present in your daily life.
- Automatic app blocking via hardware beacon
- Create multiple room-level focus zones
- Ultra-local blocking, not building-wide
- Select specific apps to block
- Gentle nudges instead of forceful blocking
- Distraction-aware dark design
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DoomCatcher is the calm little forcefield for your phone. Pair the app with the DoomCatcher beacon on your nightstand or desk and your most distracting apps quietly lock themselves when you enter its zone. No toggling focus modes, no remembering to “be good.” Just walk into the calm zone and scrolling stops. Designed for people who can’t stop “one more scroll” on TikTok, Instagram, or the news, Doom Catcher helps you actually close your eyes at night, look up at dinner, and be present when it matters. Put a DoomCatcher in the bedroom, another by your work setup, maybe one on the dining table. Each one creates its own ultra-local zone, so the blocks are tied to real spaces in your life, not vague building-wide locations. When you leave the zone, your apps unlock again—no extra steps. We call the device The DoomCatcher. You get to enjoy the quiet. Key features • Automatic blocking The app works with your Doom Catcher beacon to automatically block chosen apps whenever you’re in range. No manual switches, no extra taps. • Room-level zones Create multiple calm zones: bedroom, desk, dining table. Each Doom Catcher has its own settings, tuned to how you want to feel in that space. • Ultra-local, not building-wide Unlike app-only solutions tied to big geofences, Doom Catcher is ultra-local. It cares about your nightstand, not your entire apartment block. • Choose what gets caught Pick which apps are “doom scroll” territory and which are allowed. Messaging a friend? Maybe allowed. Infinite feeds? Caught. • Gentle, not preachy When you try to open a blocked app, Doom Catcher offers a small, calm nudge instead of guilt. You’re in charge; it just removes the friction. • Dark, distraction-aware design A dark default theme and minimal UI so even opening the app doesn’t feel like another hit of stimulation. How it works 1. Place your Doom Catcher beacon in the spot you want to protect (like your nightstand). 2. Open the app and pair it with your beacon. 3. Choose which apps should be blocked inside that zone. 4. That’s it. When you’re near your Doom Catcher, blocks turn on. When you walk away, they release. Requirements • DoomCatcher hardware device required. Available at https://doomcatcher.com • Works with Apple’s Screen Time / Family Controls framework to apply app limits on device.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: DoomCatcher at 5.0 against MLC Chat's 4.2. DoomCatcher also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 68%) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 months). MLC Chat's advantage is ratings volume (78 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
DoomCatcher holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MLC Chat has 78 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of MLC Chat's written reviews are positive against 100% of DoomCatcher's.
MLC Chat ships an update every 2 months, DoomCatcher every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on August 19, 2026 and August 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MLC Chat | DoomCatcher |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (78 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 68.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 78 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.7 GB | 16 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Tianqi Chen | Helena Jagodnik Kuhar |
Customer experience
MLC Chat
DoomCatcher
Bugs and requests
MLC Chat
Reported bugs
17 issues- Phi model crashes on iOS 26.0.1 17 Pro Max
- App crashes on iPad Pro 4th Gen, iPadOs 17.7
- RedPajama model crashes app on initialization
- Update is extremely slow
- Download model button disabled in new version
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- RedPajama model crashes, custom model download removed
- App closes when hitting send on iPhone 13
- Conversation resets when app is backgrounded
- Vicuna and Mistral 7B models cause crashes
- Some 7b q4f16/q4f32 models crash on iPhone 15 Pro
- App crashes on iPhone 13 mini
- Cannot load other models from URL
- Crash on iPhone 12
- Severe heating and frequency reduction on A15
- Low VRAM failed initialization on 3GB LP DDR4X phone
- Cannot run 4bit model on iPhone 15 with 8GB RAM
- Loading models from HF MLC official Repo causes crashes
Requested features
14 requests- Ability to import custom models (from URL/Hugging Face)
- Support for more specific models (DeepSeek, Phi-2, Gemma 2B/7B, MoE Mixtral 8x7B, LLaVA)
- History of conversations
- iOS shortcuts support
- Ability to export entire responses
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- Information on VRAM requirements per phone/model
- Ability to change system message/create custom profiles
- Ability to edit responses and system prompt
- Add coffee support
- Delete downloaded models
- Change settings per model (repetition penalties, temperature)
- How-to guide for importing/recompiling LLMs
- Estimate model compatibility before download
- Support for CN and ZH languages
DoomCatcher
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
MLC Chat
No in-app purchases
DoomCatcher
No in-app purchases









